Anything make you uneasy?

[Silver Sean]

I am bullish about next season. I predicted we'd finish 6th or 7th last year. Shows what I know. So me saying I think we'll still be up there challenging for the title this season probably means we will finish 7th this year. Anyway, I have no qualms about anywhere in the team and think we've bought really well, except... I still think there are much better keepers than Mig out there, he worries me a lot. And I would like us to buy a good defensive midfielder and say goodbye to Lucas. (I'm not counting a striker because I'm sure we'll sign another).

 

[peterhague]

I am still concerned about the striker situation. We'll get someone but I'm apprehensive about who exactly we'll get. We need a credible back-up to Sturridge. Really was too bad that Remy didn't happen, he was tailor-made.

Other than that and a keeper I think we're in great shape. We probably won't win the title but I do think it's a genuine possibility.

 

[Mystic]

I'm hoping that Lovren will bring the best of our Ming, his shot stopping ability can't be questioned, it's his decision making when coming for crosses, and poor communication which has been an issue, hopefully Lovren will take charge.

Personally I'm uneasy about the striking situation, obviously, I'm also not convinced we're going to rectify it. I'm also slightly worried about lots of teams under performed last year (Chelsea, City, Tottenham, United) and we over performed. This season will be a lot different if those teams perform more to their potential, and we don't over perform again.

 

[Hansern]

I'm hoping that Lovren will bring the best of our Ming, his shot stopping ability can't be questioned, it's his decision making when coming for crosses, and poor communication which has been an issue, hopefully Lovren will take charge.

Personally I'm uneasy about the striking situation, obviously, I'm also not convinced we're going to rectify it. I'm also slightly worried about lots of teams under performed last year (Chelsea, City, Tottenham, United) and we over performed. This season will be a lot different if those teams perform more to their potential, and we don't over perform again.

From the Dortmund game you could hear Ming has been working on commanding his area and communication.
Lovren is a Carra type CB in terms of communication and this will hopefully see Ming improve aswell.

Big season for him. If he doesnt improve he'll be replaced.

 

[peterhague]

I don't think we over-performed last season.

Spurs have a huge gap to make up on us. I don't think they're realistic contenders for the top 4.

 

[Mystic]

From the Dortmund game you could hear Ming has been working on commanding his area and communication.
Lovren is a Carra type CB in terms of communication and this will hopefully see Ming improve aswell.

Big season for him. If he doesnt improve he'll be replaced.

Indeed, and you could hear him all around the stadium, a cannon of a voice he's got. I'm not sure if he was like that last season, I never noticed on TV if he was, but it certainly seems like he's trying to improve that aspect, and I'm hopeful for his performances this season.

 

[Markeh]

Same as most people, uneasy about the possibility of Sturridge missing games and who replaces him.

Lambert will be alright for the odd game but I get the impression that Sturridge isn't quite the same player when he isn't fully 100% fit and we don't have another exceptional striker to ease his burden. Plus theres the extra European and cup games.

Even Suarez looked knackered towards the end of last season , lambert seems to have been signed with a view to keeping Suarez and being backup.

 

[Frogfish]

If we get in Romero (for Jones), Song (for Lucas) and say Lavezzi or Bony (either will do - one to help the others score more and contribute a little himself, the other to give us something we lack, aerial power and a fox in the box) then we'll be set for a great season. We do need another goal-scoring attacker though.

At the moment I'm very confident we'll make top 4 however I'm a little uneasy that United will spend like crazy in the next two weeks (Vidal, powerful CB like Hummel, Rojo and maybe another defender too) and with their lack of Euro games be a strong contender again - without those players I doubt they can get there.

 

[the_dude]

i can see us comfortably winning most games against the lesser teams, whereas last season it was often chaos with 4-3 scorelines. we will look more assured defensively and comfortable in attack when sturridge is fit. the need for a backup to him is so important, as when he is injured i can see us drawing a lot of games

 

[peterhague]

I wonder if we should take a gamble on Benteke?

Should be fit in 4 or 5 weeks, might be available a bit cheap... he'd be a proper alternative to Sturridge.

 

[HC]

Lord knows what markovic, Moreno and manquillo will be like..

I'm confident about can, lovren and lallana and not quietly hoping Lambert is used sparingly.

 

[hamstrung_pigeon]

Last season:
Defence - poor; depth: weak (in FB spots)
Midfield - excellent; depth: weak
Forward - superb (pair); depth: weak

This season:
Defence - should improve with Lovren + return of Enrique, depth: should be better (in FB spots)
Midfield - excellent; depth: should be much better
Forward - excellent (lone); depth: weak

Even without the Suarez sale, a fair bit of (re-)balanching was already needed to ensure we had better depth in all departments of the team, and a stronger backline. The Suarez move has upset the forward line a lot obviously, but the work done in the other areas feels good. Done to death but if we get a decent second striker in, we could move the assessment of the forward line to "excellent (lone); depth: should be better / good".

This balancing could result in a drop in goals scored by up to 25 or more goals, but if it's matched by an improvement of 15 or more goals not conceded, then we'll still be in the top 3 or 4. How comfortable the process of getting there is, or whether (and how hard) we can push for the title, will depend a lot on the quality and the arrival of that second striker.

I'm not too worried, but obviously dragging on with the search for said striker just makes the process less comfortable (and progressively so if it drags on further into the season) and the chances of challenging for the title (increasingly) slimmer.

 

[Bradley]

I have total confidence. I really believe we will win the league. This confidence is making me uneasy, so uneasy I was afraid to post it here.

 

[hmmmmm1]

Lost Luis and not replaced him with a quality.

Also we have a tough start which means if don't hit the ground running, could be a little behind after 10 games

 

[Mystic]

Lost Luis and not replaced him with a quality.

Also we have a tough start which means if don't hit the ground running, could be a little behind after 10 games

Thats my big worry too, if we get less than six points from the first three, it'll be a huge blow.

 

[peterhague]

Thats my big worry too, if we get less than six points from the first three, it'll be a huge blow.

5 would be ok, surely?

 

[hamstrung_pigeon]

I wonder if we should take a gamble on Benteke?



Should be fit in 4 or 5 weeks, might be available a bit cheap... he'd be a proper alternative to Sturridge.

I like this idea, though like Rossi and his knees (ACL ruptures), I'm wary of the Achilles tendon injury (tear?) that put Benteke out for so long. I have the impression that this tends to be a recurring injury, or that a player who has had such an injury doesn't return to their previous levels, or are eventually forced out of the game in some cases.

 

[Mystic]

5 would be ok, surely?

It puts us on the back foot from the start, so not for me.

 

[Dirty Sanchez]

Reus to Arsenal.

 

[Mystic]

No

 

[Fabio]

If Reus moves to arsenal I would seriously begin to question our ambitions

 

[Hansern]

If Reus moves to arsenal I would seriously begin to question our ambitions

He wont.

 

[Skullflower]

I wonder if we should take a gamble on Benteke?

Should be fit in 4 or 5 weeks, might be available a bit cheap... he'd be a proper alternative to Sturridge.

not a bad shout. i've never seen much of him but rodgers seemed to really rate him a while back.

 

[mom]

Bony would do a job. I think he's the least we will sign.
Him and a back up/ Borini.
Lucas needs to go, and Song would be nice as a replacement.

 

[mark1975]

It's hard to predict because the competition is fierce, and despite strong squads all round, like any side, a key injury can fuck you over big time. We need a striker and we'll be ok I reckon, we've got good depth and we've bought fairly sensibly aside from probably overpaying for Lallana and Markovic, but they could both more than prove the transfer fees were worth it.

I think Lovren is still our key capture though, we keep him fit and he's a massive part of our newly shaped backbone. If Can can fulfill the massive potential he has and if Rodgers can work on his tendency to be a bit sloppy, then we could be onto winner.

In terms of technical ability, pace and athleticism, I'm struggling to remember us looking stronger.

Aside from Lucas (who looks like he's on his way), do we have anyone who is particularly "slow"?

 

[mom]

Only problem with having loads of pace is that teams will just sit deep against us and frustrate us. Hopefully, we'll have the skill in the squad to unlock a few defences too.

 

[peterhague]

Only problem with having loads of pace is that teams will just sit deep against us and frustrate us. Hopefully, we'll have the skill in the squad to unlock a few defences too.

Lallana, Coutinho, Sterling, Markovic, Moreno, Suso, all of them are creative and nimble on the ball. I think we've got the players to score goals against any team.

 

[mom]

Lallana, Coutinho, Sterling, Markovic, Moreno, Suso, all of them are creative and nimble on the ball. I think we've got the players to score goals against any team.

Maybe, but Suso markovic and Moreno we know nothing about against decent Prem teams. Lallana will be great.
Maybe the Chelsea game at the end of last season still weighs heavily on my mind, but even with Suarez Coutinho and Sterling, we were shut out. We had the best player in the world playing for us last season and he was great at getting something out of nothing, especially against dogged teams.
Ahh maybe I'm being negative.

 

[peterhague]

Maybe, but Suso markovic and Moreno we know nothing about against decent Prem teams. Lallana will be great.
Maybe the Chelsea game at the end of last season still weighs heavily on my mind, but even with Suarez Coutinho and Sterling, we were shut out. We had the best player in the world playing for us last season and he was great at getting something out of nothing, especially against dogged teams.
Ahh maybe I'm being negative.

If Chelsea under Mourinho want to play like that there's barely a team in the world who can break them down, at least not without a bit of luck.

 

[keniget]

Maybe, but Suso markovic and Moreno we know nothing about against decent Prem teams. Lallana will be great.
Maybe the Chelsea game at the end of last season still weighs heavily on my mind, but even with Suarez Coutinho and Sterling, we were shut out. We had the best player in the world playing for us last season and he was great at getting something out of nothing, especially against dogged teams.
Ahh maybe I'm being negative.

Suso, Markovic and Moreno have all played at a high level - it's not like they're coming from the reserves.